I could get into a whole scenario involving a cruise ship and a spontaneous Chuck Norris attack, but I'll try to make this short and sweet. So anyway, you are alone, stranded on a tropical island. You find a small blade and a flare gun with two flares washed up on the shore. After a day of observing, you make a few notes in your head about what's on the island.
Geography:[ A circle-shaped mass about 2 miles across. There is one small lake near the center. A few caves are scattered about.
[b]Life: The island has tall trees and grass near the center of the island and some scrub brush near the beach. As far as animals go, some small birds flock near the canopy of the trees and half sized wild pigs wander by the trees.
Climate: Tropical
How do you survive and what will you do to be rescued?
I would build a small bucket of a tree. It will be a tall, narrow bucket. I would make about twelve of those. I would fill it with salt water. Place a sheet of plastic over it. Let the drops of water condensate over the plastic. Drink the clean water.
I would also make a small home in the cave, and make a little bed above the ground to keep the creepy crawlers off of me.
First off, I would go to the center of the island where everything is. Once there, I would build a shelter near the lake under the shade of the trees(as to not get sun burned). Once there is some kind of shelter, I'd set up a system of collecting water. I'd dig a hole in the ground, and put one of those big leaves over it to collect rain water. After it rains, I would also collect drink the water and dew on the plants and leaves. Then, I'd begin making a fire, and get a good supply of firewood and keep the fire going 24/7 to keep the pigs and other "intruders" away. Next, I would begin to make a spear to fish with. Then I'd go fishing and cook dinner. Once everything was done it is time to sleep. The next morning, I would make a hammock with plant and bamboo fibers. After that I'd walk around the beach taking things that could be useful back to camp. On that walk, I would find some coconuts and bananas(assuming we are on a tropical desert island) and make a stash of food back at camp. Since I would most likely have a knife with me before I was stranded, I would use that knife I had with me to carve a bamboo shaft to crack the coconuts. Now I would have water and coconut milk to drink, and the bananas, fish, and the coconut "meat" to eat. The next morning I would place wood to make the structure of a huge signal fire and make a torch. I would also find many rocks place them on the beach spelling out a large 'S.O.S' . When and if I heard a plane, I could dip the torch in my fire, and light the signal fire. That *signal* fire would create a lot of visible smoke to hopefully catch the attention of the pilot. When the plane was in sight, if it appeared he was not going to investigate, I would shoot a flare. IF there was no such luck of rescue, I would continue living constantly making my "home" more luxurious and upgrading things(like making a shelf in a tree to place food out of animal reach, attempting to make a basket or a bowl out of fibers to boil lake water, etc.). Lastly, I would try to not think about the rest of the world, as it would distract and depress me.
Well there you have it; what I would do if I were stranded on that island. I wanted to provide a realistic description of what I would ACTUALLY do in a time like this.
